Transitions
We all tend to feel excitement with the possibilities that a new year brings -- it’s a clean slate from which to start. On one hand, as we anticipate this new year unfolding, we may desire change -- positive improvements to our situation like better health (are the Gyms still crowded?), or maybe a newer vehicle or a more spacious home, or a determination to enjoy more outings with friends or to take a vacation somewhere warm.
On the other hand, change can also strike fear in our hearts – as it often involves the unknown.
One of my favorite Norman Rockwell paintings is called “The Losing Candidate.” It shows an aging politician, slumped in a chair, and we surmise by his shocked expression that his opponent won. Behind him is an ironic campaign poster that says “Vote Casey… People’s Choice.” Casey was eagerly anticipating a change that didn’t happen – being chosen by the electorate to represent them. Casey’s face indicates his realization that his situation was not going to improve. And we, as a viewer of this artwork, can somehow relate.
After November 3rd, many politicians in all 50 states as well as our nation’s Capital will be transitioning in or out of office. People often complain about their representatives, and yet, often re-elect them. In fact, 22 out of 31 incumbent presidents who have run again were re-elected. But when there is a transition of power in the White House, presidents have a Transition Team that operates between the election and inauguration, to help minimize the chaos that naturally occurs with change.
Though I’m no president, I also experienced a minor-yet-major change recently, depending how one might look at it. The day after Christmas, I turned 50! I love birthdays, I love getting older, and I especially love it when I hit a new decade in my years. My Facebook profile lists my actual birth date, because I’ve never been ashamed of how “old” I am getting. It’s incredible, though, looking back at how many changes have happened decade by decade in my life. I can easily recall about twenty minutes ago turning 20 – I was in college as a communications major, a single man with a full head of red hair, planning to be a broadcaster. Fifteen minutes later, I turned 30. That year I was a married father of two, selling houses for a living, leading the drama ministry at a church, and sporting a thinning hairline. And ten minutes ago, I turned 40. By then I was directing student recruitment at my university alma mater, coaching my kids’ soccer teams, teaching Sunday School and shaving my balding head daily.
Changes, changes!
Thinking About the End
Statistically, an American man’s lifespan is 78 years. So at 40, there was no denying it -- I was officially “over the hill.” Still, I did not feel a need to quit my wife, buy a sports car and pretend to be young again. But turning 50 -- wow. The past seven years I’ve been serving the Lord as a full-time pastor for Horizons Church, and I love leading the campus my family and friends planted in Junior in 2013. While I remain upbeat and happy, hitting the big 5-0 has also proved to be a mental turning point. I also realize I am somewhere in the second half of my earthly life, which has already flown by. That is a solemn, but also inspiring, enlightenment.
A friend of mine my age just died on January 1st. I knew Karl for 20 years, we were once part of the same ministry; he led youth and I led drama. More recently, Karl was serving God by meeting people’s spiritual and physical needs in northern Mexico. Like many of us, he had just posted pictures of his family’s Christmas to his social media, and was enjoying good health. But suddenly, shortly after Christmas, Karl developed a lung infection, and was gone within days.
What a terrible change for his wife and children – and a sobering reality check for the rest of us.
How do we deal with change, with transitions in our lives? Our attitude towards life’s changes and transitions goes a long way. Paul tells Christians in Romans 8:28 – “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Realizing transitions and changes, great and small, are part of God’s plan for me, helps me trust that it will turn out alright in the final analysis.
We must also recognize that, despite the constant changes happening in life, there is One who does not change – our God! He is the lighthouse planted on an immovable rock. When the waves are crashing all around – he doesn’t move. His bedrock, absolute truth is the same – yesterday, today, and forever!
Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
When we are struggling with a hardship, or are dealing with something that hasn’t turned out as hoped – we trust all the more in our Lord, and talk it out with him in prayer. He can handle even our hardest questions! God is good, and wants the best for us. He calls us to believe in him, and to navigate the changes of life during 2020 one day at a time, by faith in his name.
